The last time the UFC touched down at Milwaukee’s Bradley Center, welterweight favorite Chris Lytle was swinging for the fences in his retirement bout, Versus was still a TV channel, and Benson Henderson was on the road to redemption after losing his WEC title to upstart Anthony Pettis, a kickboxer and MMA fighter three years his junior.

That was August 2011, six months before Henderson traveled to Japan and came back with the UFC lightweight title, and three months after Pettis let his title momentum ride and lost in the octagon against Clay Guida.

In just two years, Henderson has established himself as a dominant force in the lightweight division, and he has aspirations to beat former middleweight champ Anderson Silva‘s record of 10 title defenses. Pettis, who hasn’t lost since his gamble against Guida, looks to prove his decision win over Henderson in the WEC’s final event in 2010 was no fluke.

With the crossover of several WEC fighters to the UFC, the latter’s lightweight division looks very different than it did back then. For one, Gray Maynard is on the road to redemption, and Guida is now a featherweight, as is former champ Frankie Edgar. But the young blood from the defunct promotion has brought great talent such as Henderson and Pettis into the UFC and given them the stage to perform – so put your fan caps on.

1. Pettis vs. Henderson

Pettis (16-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) looked like a man destined for something bigger when he first fought Henderson (19-2 MMA, 7-0 UFC) nearly three years ago. He was just a little more crisp in the striking department and quick to turn the tables to his advantage when the two inevitably locked up. In two of three UFC performances, Pettis has looked no less like a champion. But in the UFC, Henderson often has looked like the one with destiny on his side, winning several razor-thin decisions.

The biggest question is whether the two will make different music in the time since their first meeting. Their closely matched skills seem to guarantee another close five-round fight, but given their unpredictability in the cage, as best shown by Pettis’ aerodynamics, anything could happen. And seriously, how can you not hope it does – preferably in the form of another gravity-defying kick?

Sure, on paper, it’s Canadian lightweight T.J. Grant. He’s the guy who stopped Maynard in impressive fashion to secure the title shot, and it’s only because he’s injured that he’s not fighting Henderson on Saturday. But what happens if the champ’s rematch with Pettis is one for the ages? What if the winner is benched afterward by injury? It’s always good to hear it from UFC President Dana White’s mouth who the next guy in line is, and immediately after the event at the news conference, there should be confirmation on who’s fighting the winner of UFC 164’s headliner.

3. Does Barnett still have it?

Hardcore fans know that Josh Barnett (32-6 MMA, 4-1 UFC), who won the UFC belt in 2002 before a positive steroid test promoted a move overseas, can beat just about any heavyweight outside the industry-leader, but his loss to Daniel Cormier under the Strikeforce banner indicated he might be behind the sport’s young lions. Frank Mir (16-7 MMA, 14-7 UFC) isn’t one of those, of course, but he does offer an intriguing style matchup and a starting point for what’s likely Barnett’s last shot at a major title. Not only that, it’s his chance to expose himself to a whole new audience. The UFC’s promotional machine suggests this is a showdown of two expert grapplers who have run parallel to each other over the past decade, but don’t be surprised if you see Barnett stand and attempt to expose the standup weaknesses that others have against former champ Mir.

4. Speaking of Mir …

The former champ has lost his past two inside the octagon, and, according to White, could retire if his skid continues. Why wouldn’t he? The 34-year-old fighter isn’t going to get a title shot any time soon, having been knocked out in an interim title fight with the now-retired Shane Carwin and by Junior dos Santos for the undisputed belt. Does the jiu-jitsu black belt have one last dash in him before he hangs up his gloves? Barnett isn’t a bad measuring stick, but he could also bring the career reaper.

5. Featherweight backup plan

Like Urijah Faber, Chad Mendes (14-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) hit his glass ceiling against champ Jose Aldo. With Ricardo Lamas in queue for a title fight, it might be a while before he gets a chance to avenge a first-round KO to the current champ. Guida (30-13 MMA, 10-7 UFC), who dropped to 145 pounds at the start of this year, isn’t tainted by a previous loss to Aldo, though his recent performances haven’t won the approval of the UFC. That might prove to be a bigger barrier to the title shot, but the matchup is a key fight in the division, with the winner perhaps in line for the No. 2 or No 3. spot.

6. Vera returns to heavyweight, Rothwell returns on TRT

Seven years ago, Brandon Vera (12-6 MMA, 8-6 UFC) was the hottest thing in the UFC heavyweight division. He was ambitious, too, gunning for titles in the big-man and light-heavyweight classes. Then a pair of losses sent him back to earth, and he never really regained his step. With a 1-3 record (and one no-contest) in his recent career, Vera had nowhere to go but up – in weight. He returns to his old division to meet another fighter at a crossroads, Ben Rothwell (32-9 MMA, 2-3 UFC). The former IFL and Affliction fighter has struggled with injuries and hasn’t fought much like his younger self in the UFC. Maybe that’s why he decided to join the ranks of those undergoing testosterone-replacement therapy. Now, fans can see if Vera was right when he told MMAjunkie.com, “It won’t help.”

7. Two featherweights, plenty of hits

Erik Koch (13-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) was once the guy to fight Jose Aldo. A training partner of Anthony Pettis and protege of the reknowned Duke Roufus, he displayed flashes of striking brilliance in the cage. What happened? As per the usual in this game: injury. The champ got injured, and then Koch did, too. When he returned, Lamas bloodied him on national TV. His fight with Dustin Poirier (13-3 MMA, 5-2 UFC) offers a chance to show again why he’s one of the most promising guys at 145 pounds. Poirier, who won four straight after dropping from lightweight, is a guy who can’t afford to fall much further after losses to Chan Sung Jung and Cub Swanson. They’re both motivated to make a statement, and that very often makes for some highlight-reel fighting.

8. Blue-light special

The flyweight class is the land of opportunity for guys who safely drop from bantamweight. It’s the smallest division in the UFC, and Manic Panic lover Louis Gaudinot (6-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) presents a fresh threat to champ Demetrious Johnson. He’s got the speed to catch his foes and the wrestling to dictate where a fight goes. On Saturday, he needs an impressive performance against Tim Elliott (9-3-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) so he can give his promotion more title challenger options than Joseph Benavidez.

9. Couture redux

As the son of UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture, Ryan Couture (6-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) had impossibly big shoes to fill. But the young fighter put together some big wins in the now-defunct Strikeforce promotion and deserved to cross over to the UFC. He didn’t deserve the grief that came along with it – a bitter spat between his dad and his dad’s former employer, who banned “The Natural” from attending UFC events – or the out-of-his-league opponent he got when he made his way to the octagon. Now, after a bad second-round TKO loss to Ross Pearson, he gets a more managable challenge in “The Ultimate Fighter 15″ finalist Al Iaquinta (5-2-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC), who’s returning from a long layoff and looking to bag a big name.

10. Wisconsin pride!

UFC 164 will have a decidedly Milwaukee feel to it with six fighters either training in Milwaukee or natives of an hour away, which means you’re bound to hear one of those pumped, partisan crowds at Bradley Center. Mixed in with all those foil-rich MMA shirts could be a healthy dose of Packers green and yellow. Main-card fighters Pettis and Koch train at Roufus’ Milwaukee gym, as do preliminary-card fighters Pascal Krauss and Chico Camus. Rothwell is from an hour outside of the city in Kenosha, Wis. And Guida grew up near the Wisconsin border, just an hour away in Johnsville, Ill.

As the UFC 189 tour made its last stop in Dublin, featherweight champ Jose Aldo was met with a torrent of abuse from the Irish fans. It might have been unpleasant, but it might also have been just what he needed.